The Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (c 52) is a UK Act of Parliament which regulates United Kingdom labour law. The Act applies in full in England and Wales and in Scotland, and partially in Northern Ireland. The law contained in the Act (TULRCA 1992) has existed in more or less the same form since the Trade Disputes Act 1906. Underneath a mass of detail, four main principles can be found in the main parts of the Act. The Act's effect is to define trade unions and state they are the subjects of legal rights and duties protect the right of workers to organise into, or leave, a union without suffering discrimination or detriment provide a framework for a union to engage in collective bargaining for better workplace or business standards with employers protect the right of workers in a union to take action, including strike action and industrial action short of a strike, to support and defend their interests, when reasonable notice is given, and when that action is "in contemplation or furtherance of a trade dispute" Background The 1992 was a major recodification of Acts passed since 1980 that had reduced the freedom of workers to organise, collectively bargain, and take collective action. Before 1979, the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974 had set the basic structure, which had itself reversed the major overhaul of the Industrial Relations Act 1971. Each new piece of legislation tightened regulation of trade union activity, and expanded employer power. By contrast, the historical regulation of unions by Parliament had been expansive, in contrast to the courts, beginning with the Trade Union Act 1871. After a number of cases imposing economic torts for unions taking action, the Trade Disputes Act 1906 confirmed that unions should be free to conduct collective bargaining without the interference of the judiciary. Part I, Trade unions Chapter I, sections 1 to 9, outlines the meaning of independent trade unions. Chapter II, sections 10 to 23, elaborates on the legal status of trade unions and their rights and duties in possessing property and being sued in court. Chapter III, sections 24 to 45, concern internal administration requirements of a union, such as the duty to make accounts and get audits, and the duty to supply a copy of the rule book to any person for a reasonable price. Chapter IV, sections 46 to 56A, involves